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Civic Engagement and Voting: Books, Videos, & more
This guide shares resources and strategies for learning about socio political issues in order to vote or otherwise participate in civic discourse. It also details local resources for getting involved as well at UNLV and local events.
Below are a selection of book, streaming videos, and databases available from UNLV University Libraries about civic engagement and voting. Visit the Libraries website to discover more.
Books To Read
Bending Toward Justice by Gary May
ISBN: 9780465018468
Publication Date: 2013-04-09
When the Fifteenth Amendment of 1870 granted African Americans the right to vote, it seemed as if a new era of political equality was at hand. Before long, however, white segregationists across the South counterattacked, driving their black countrymen from the polls through a combination of sheer terror and insidious devices such as complex literacy tests and expensive poll taxes. Most African Americans would remain voiceless for nearly a century more, citizens in name only until the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act secured their access to the ballot.
The Capacity for Civic Engagement by David P. Levine
ISBN: 9780230102835
Publication Date: 2011-02-02
How do we form a connection to the ideals and institutions of public life? This connection is sometimes expressed in the language of civic engagement, public service, and commitment to the public good. While we do not lack for literature to guide us in thinking about public life, we have less to call on when our problem is not only to explore public ideals and institutions, but also to consider the nature and origin of our capacity to make a connection with and find meaning in those institutions and ideals.
Century of Struggle by Eleanor Flexner; Ellen Fitzpatrick
ISBN: 0674106539
Publication Date: 1996-03-01
Century of Struggle tells the story of one of the great social movements in American history. The struggle for women's voting rights was one of the longest, most successful, and in some respects most radical challenges ever posed to the American system of electoral politics.
Citizens in the Present by Maria de los Angeles Torres; Norma Del Rio; Irene Rizzini
ISBN: 9780252094910
Publication Date: 2013-01-01
Although media coverage often portrays young people in urban areas as politically apathetic or disruptive, this book provides an antidote to such views through narratives of dedicated youth civic engagement and leadership in Chicago, Mexico City, and Rio de Janeiro.
Direct Democracy in the United States by Shauna Reilly; Ryan M. Yonk
ISBN: 9780203106792
Publication Date: 2012-11-27
The increased use of direct democracy measures across the United States has brought attention to the individual petitioner however their motivations and goals continue to be an enigma. Drawing on behavioral, historical and legal analysis to provide a more concrete depiction of these individuals, expert contributors examine the true personalities, motivations and expectations, successes and failures of petitioners in the direct democracy process and how they culminate in policy formation across the United States.
Practicing Democracy by Daniel Peart (Editor); Adam I. P. Smith (Editor)
ISBN: 9780813937717
Publication Date: 2015-07-07
In Practicing Democracy, eleven historians challenge conventional narratives of democratization in the early United States, offering new perspectives on the period between the ratification of the Constitution and the outbreak of the Civil War.
The Right to Vote by Alexander Keyssar
ISBN: 0465005020
Publication Date: 2009-06-30
Originally published in 2000, The Right to Vote was widely hailed as a magisterial account of the evolution of suffrage from the American Revolution to the end of the twentieth century. In this revised and updated edition, Keyssar carries the story forward, from the disputed presidential contest of 2000 through the 2008 campaign and the election of Barack Obama. The Right to Vote is a sweeping reinterpretation of American political history as well as a meditation on the meaning of democracy in contemporary American life.
Sacred Assemblies and Civic Engagement by Fred Lamar Kniss; Paul David Numrich; Paul D. Numrich; Fred Kniss
ISBN: 0813543053
Publication Date: 2007-07-11
Immigration to the United States has been a major source of population growth and cultural change throughout much of America's history. Currently, about 40 percent of the nation's annual population growth comes from the influx of foreign-born individuals and their children. As these new voices enter America's public conversations, they bring with them a new understanding of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity to a society that has been marked by religious variety.
The State of Citizen Participation in America by Hindy Lauer Schachter
ISBN: 1617358363
Publication Date: 2012-09-01
This book provides a stateoftheart assessment of citizen participation practice and research in the United States. With contributions from a stellar group of scholars, it provides readers an overview of a field at the heart of democratic governance. Individual chapters trace shifts in participation philosophy and policy, examine trends at different government levels, analyze technology/participation interactions, identify the participation experiences of minority populations, and explore the impact of voluntary organizations on this topic.
Urban Environmental Stewardship and Civic Engagement by Dana R. Fisher; Erika S. Svendsen; James Connolly
ISBN: 9781317934158
Publication Date: 2015-02-11
Once considered the antithesis of a verdant and vibrant ecosystem, cities are now being hailed as highly efficient and complex social ecological systems. Emerging from the streets of the post-industrial city are well-tended community gardens, rooftop farms and other viable habitats capable of supporting native flora and fauna. At the forefront of this transformation are the citizens living in the cities themselves. As people around the world increasingly relocate to urban areas, this book discusses how they engage in urban stewardship and what civic participation in the environment means for democracy.
In the hours leading up to Donald Trump's unexpected victory on Election Day 2016, a cross-section of Americans go about their radically different lives.
Sweeping progressive reforms changed the face of American politics. Observe how initiatives at the city level began the eventual transformation of urban political machines into players in political reform. Examine major political reforms at the state and federal levels, culminating in the civil service system, popularly elected senators, and voting rights for women.
A fresh, provocative, even humorous study of political identity, Bring It to The Table features Americans from all walks of life sharing their beliefs and values about the hot-button topics of today. In this time of increasing hyperpartisanship, insults, and gridlock, Bring It to The Table offers an antidote to negativity and a hopeful way to move our democracy forward.
Recalling a watershed event in US politics, this Peabody Award-winning documentary takes an in-depth look at the 1972 presidential campaign of Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to Congress and the first to seek nomination for the highest office in the land.
North Carolina -- perhaps more than any other state in the Union -- has been transformed by the new and growing tidal wave of political spending. Zach Galifianakis, the comic star of "The Hangover" movies, travels back to his home state to investigate how North Carolina has become a bellwether for how the money of a few has come to dominate our democracy.
In this era of Facebook privacy breaches, "fake news" and filter bubbles, the essential film DIGITAL DISCONNECT trains its sights on the relationship between the internet and democracy.
Twelve eye-opening episodes guide you through the ins and outs of presidential investigations, using past events as a lens through which to make sense of current (and future) ones.
MR. CAO GOES TO WASHINGTON follows the unexpected journey of Rep. Joseph Cao--the first Vietnamese American elected to the US Congress, the only non-white House Republican of the 111th Congress, and the only Republican to vote for President Obama's Health Care Reform Bill. Will Cao keep his integrity and idealism intact?
Of all the battles waged on Nashville's doorstep, the final throes for the passage of the 19th Amendment were among the most heated, controversial and colorful. In July of 1920, all eyes were on the Tennessee capital as anti- and pro-suffragists each fought for their vision of a socially evolving United States.
STATE LEGISLATURE shows the day-to-day activities of the Idaho Legislature during an entire session. Lobbyists, lawmakers and their constituents are seen debating and discussing the concerns of the electorate, on issues that range from violence in schools, mad cow disease and video voyeurism to illegal immigration, secondhand smoke and the deregulation of telephone rates. The film is an example of the achievements, values, constraints and limitations of the democratic process.
More than 50 years after the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most extensive pieces of civil rights legislation, people of color across the United States still are engaged in a battle to protect their right to vote. VOTING MATTERS follows one dynamic woman working tirelessly on the ground and in the courts to ensure that they are not denied this right.
Coming at a moment of profound political and social crisis, WHAT IS DEMOCRACY? reflects on a word we too often take for granted. Director Astra Taylor's idiosyncratic, philosophical journey spans millennia and continents: from ancient Athens' groundbreaking experiment in self-government to capitalism's roots in medieval Italy; from modern-day Greece grappling with financial collapse and a mounting refugee crisis to the United States reckoning with its racist past and the growing gap between rich and poor.
50 Nevada newspapers searchable in one database. Find information on Nevada's economy, business & industry, legislation, opinions and viewpoints, local history and much more.
Access Nevada is a searchable subset of Access World News.
Provides access to current newspapers from around the world in full-color, full-page format. Includes over 5,000 titles from the U.S. and 100 countries in 60 languages. Registering as a user with the site is optional and allows for personalized, saved settings.
Users may access the database on desktop computer, tablet and smartphone. An archive is also available to browse by country, language, and newspaper title, and to search full text of articles, photograph captions, and headlines.
1789-
U.S. legislative information, including access to many full-text Congressional publications, bills, laws, regulations, committee information, and more. Includes the U.S. Serial Set.
Comprehensive access to U.S. legislative information, including access to many full-text Congressional publications, bills, laws, regulations, committee information, and more. Additionally, searchers can retrieve CIS Legislative Histories for public laws. Contains an index of congressional publications from 1789 to the present and locate information about members and committees. Statutes at Large and Congressional Indexes from 1789-1969 are included.
State Stats features data from more than 80 different government and non-government sources and backed by a rich collection of more than 3,000 current and historical data series on popular topics of research interest.
State Stats allows users to discover, view, and export key information measures for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Local Stats provides comparable data across all 50 states from U.S. counties, cities, and metropolitan statistical areas across a broad variety of topics applicable to the social sciences.
U.S. Political Stats is a powerful data download and visualization tool covering all three branches of the United States government.
Bringing together valued content from sources like CQ Roll Call and CQ Press, users will discover a wealth of information on election returns, congressional floor votes, Supreme Court decisions, plus presidential performance and economic indicators, as well as diverse demographics.
The Statistical Abstract of the United States is an annual summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic conditions of the United States.
The online version contains over 1400 individually indexed tables that are both searchable and browsable.
1923-
In depth research on controversial topics ranging from social issues to environment, health, education, science, and technology issues.
Balanced information on all sides of an issue, including comments from experts in the field, numerous charts and graphs, a pro-con feature, a chronology, a lengthy bibliography for additional research, and a list of contacts are included in each report.
First time users must register with their UNLV email address. The account will need to be renewed each June.
MyResearcher is a data-tracking and information reporting tool created by Applied Analysis with Las Vegas and Clark County area statistics as well as detailed gaming statistics from across the United States..
MyResearcher allows users to search millions of economic, fiscal, social and environmental metrics, tracking and trending the ones that matter most to them. MyResearcher has Las Vegas and Clark County area statistics as well as detailed gaming statistics from across the United States.
Political science journals published by Sage and participating societies.
It covers such subjects as General Political Science, American Government & Politics, Political Sociology, Comparative Politics, Policy Studies, Political Communication, Peace / Conflict Studies, Presidential Studies, Political Theory / Philosophy, International Relations, and Area Studies.
Think tank reports and documents on social and political issues.
Searches the RAND archive of over 17,000 titles dating back to 1948. RAND publications deal with such issues as national defense, education and training, health care, criminal and civil justice, labor and population, science and technology, community development, international relations, and regional studies.
The Roper Center for Public Opinion Research, located at Cornell University, is one of the world’s leading archives of social science data, specializing in data from public opinion surveys.
Most of the data are from surveys conducted on national samples from the United States, though over 100 other nations are also represented.